Naruto: Life With the Tanaka Clan
by RobotMonkeyFreak13
Summary: When four new ninja come to Konohagakure, life gets a lot more intresting: new intrests, new friends, and new enemies. Plus, the cutest couple in the world: Naruto x Hinata! Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

_WOOHOO! I'm here and there's nothin' u can_

_do 'bout it! Anyway, I have a really cute story_

'_bout Naruto and the other ninjas and how they_

_meet four new ninja..._

_How intriguing..._

It was dawn... And Naruto was asleep on a tree, dreaming dreams not thought to exist but only to him... He was dreaming about what he said he would... (as usual) He was the hokage, and he was sitting right next to his wife, Sakura, enjoying his 12th bowl of ramen with his only child.

Then, all of a sudden... _Naruto, wake up! NARUTO!_

"AAAAGH!" Naruto then found himself sprawled on the forest floor. "What the heck's your problem!" he protested madly. "Hunh? Oh, sorry, Sakura!" Sakura stood there, glaring at Naruto. "Oh, good morning Sasuke!" she greeted Sasuke.

Uchiha Sasuke, the hottest guy in all of Konohagakure! (OK, in MY opinion) As usual, he let out a soft "Hmph..." and ignored Haruno Sakura. Let me repeat: as usual.

"Attention, Konoha Chunin! I, Umino Iruka, have an announcement to make!"

Everyone's attention (and heads) turned to Iruka. "Ahem! Naruto, turn around!" Iruka was looking at Naruto, who was looking the other way.

"As I was saying, I have an announcement to make! All of you are about to meet four new ninja: two kunoichi and two male ninja. Allow me to introduce them!"

Nothing happened...

"Umm, I said: Allow me to introduce them!" Iruka-sensei repeated, this time in a louder voice! (sorry...)

This time, a huge puff of smoke exploded onto the stage. Everyone coughed, taking their attention off of the stage. After the smoke cleared, there was a boy on the stage. He was, but of course, the same age as some of the ninja (12) and he had glistening black, spiky hair. "This is Tanaka Hiroki, cousin of the heir to the Tanaka throne," Iruka-sensei informed the young ninja. Hiroki disappeared from the stage and next up was another boy. "What a drag!" Shikamaru let out. "That last guy was SO hot!" Ino and Sakura yelped. "This is Tanaka Rekai," Iruka-sensei said. Rekai disappeared from the stage as well and this time, a kunoichi strutted up the stage. "The first kunoichi I am about to introduce: Tanaka Hikari." She strutted about the stage for about 2 minutes then strutted off. "Next up is the highest ranking kunoichi in all of Konohagakure. She is the heir--- I'm sorry, heiress, to the Tanaka throne! Please welcome Tanaka Kirei!" Then, with just one puff of smoke, a girl poofed onto the stage. She was a very beautiful girl. (this is very appropriate because her name means "beautiful") She, too, had glistening, black hair. Her hair had spiky wisps that stuck out and bangs that were also sort of spiky except they stayed down. She wore a hitai-ate leaf headband like some Konoha ninja except she wore it around her forehead as it should. She stood there for a while, uninterested. All of the male ninja gaped at her in awe and wonder. "Now THAT'S hot, Ino!" Shikamaru exclaimed. Even Sasuke AND Neji stared at her! She sighed and then walked off the stage. All the guys sighed and, in their mind, wondered if they could stare at her some more...

After the Tanaka clan introduction, Tenten, Rock Lee, Neji, Hinata, Kiba, Shino, Shikamaru, Ino, Choji, Naruto, Sakura, and even Sasuke decided to play a little game of _Truth or Dare_. They spun a bottle and, somehow, it managed to land between Tenten and Lee. "gasp Both of us? And we both chose 'dare'?" Lee gasped. "Alright, you both have to introduce yourself to all four of those Tanaka ninja, including the heiress." Neji declared. (he gave a sigh while he was saying 'the heiress') Lee and Tenten turned around and looked back at the four Tanaka ninjas. "Are you crazy!" Tenten snapped at Neji. "They looked like they're willing to tear anyone who crosses their path apart!" "If you two are too chicken to try it, I'll do it!" Everyone turned around and stared in wonder at Naruto. "Didya hear me! I said--" "Naruto, are you nuts or are you nuts!" Sakura demanded and scolded. "Umm... Naruto..." Everyone turned their heads again and looked at a fidgeting Hinata. "Umm... If you'd like... Uh...gulp I could come with you..." she emitted. "OK, Hinata! You could come with me!" Naruto replied. "Oh! Really?" she asked. "Yeah, sure, why not?" he told her.

About halfway down the path to where the young, new ninjas were sitting, Hinata told Naruto, "Umm, Naruto? I-I think we should go back..." "After all the progress we've made so far? Forget it! Hey, don't take it so seriously, Hinata..." Naruto's voice went from loud and annoying to soft and comforting when he saw the expression on Hinata's face. He lifted her head in that cute way when guys lift a girl's head up by the chin! "Oh, Naruto... I-I---" "Hey," Naruto interrupted, "calm down for a little bit... Don't worry; we're going to be fine! Listen, why don't you hold on to me so you can feel safer?" Hinata stared at him for a while and then said, "Oh... OK, Naruto..." She grabbed his arm and, once again, they took of toward the Tanaka ninjas.

"Hi there! My name is Uzumaki Naruto and this is Hyuga Hinata!" Naruto introduced himself to the Tanaka ninjas. The three of them looked at Naruto as if he was a psychotic idiot. "Hi! I'm Hikari, this is Rekai, and that's Hiroki!" one of the kunoichi introduced all three of them. "Wait a minute! Weren't there four of you?" Naruto interrogated. "Oh, my cousin just decided to wander the forest," Hiroki told Naruto.

As Hinata and Naruto approached the heiress, Hinata grabbed for Naruto's hand. "You okay, Hinata?" Naruto asked. "I-I'm fine Naruto..." she replied. "OK, you sure? We can go back right now, if you want that is... I just want you to know that I'll always be there for you, OK?" Then, they got closer, closed their eyes, and--- "Can I help you two?" Naruto and Hinata peeled their eyes open and their eyes met the heiress'. "Oh, yeah, you can! My name's Uzumaki Naruto and this is Hyuga Hinata!" Naruto said as before. "Tanaka Kirei. Nice to meet you Naruto and Hinata!" the heiress introduced herself. "You two make a really cute couple!" she complimented. "Oh..." Hinata blushed.

"So, Naruto, do you have any ambitions?" Kirei asked. "Do I have any what?" Naruto questioned. "She's asking you if you have any goals you want to accomplish, Naruto," Hinata explained.

"I want to be the next Hokage! That's my life's dream!" Naruto self-assuredly told Kirei. "Hey, Naruto, do you want me to tell you if you will accomplish your goals?" Kirei interrogated.

"How will you be able to do that?" Hinata asked. "It's very simple: I will use a special Tanaka eye called 'the future eyes'," Kirei explained.

"OK, Naruto, I want you to relax." Kirei calmly told Naruto. Suddenly, her eyes turned silver and wisps of green, blue, and red appeared in her eyes.

"Well, Naruto," Kirei gasped, "it looks like you're going to accomplish your life's dream!" "Really! How's it like?" Naruto demanded. "I really can't explain it, but I can tell you that you won't become hokage now. You'll be hokage, but you're going to become the village champion when you're, I'd say in your twenties...And you will be a very successful hokage beside your beautiful wife. Oh! I can tell you no more, Naruto. I'm sorry!" Kirei told Naruto. "That's OK, Kirei! Hey, that rhymed!" Naruto forgave her. "You're very funny, Naruto! I like you! How'd you two like to be my very first friends in Konohagakure? You'll be my best friends! How about it?" Kirei asked. "That sounds like a perfect idea!" Naruto replied, "We'll be your very best friends!"

As soon as Kirei, Naruto, and Hinata arrived in the clearing, Sakura leaped toward Naruto and, with a huge breath, said, "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN YOU LITTLE IDIOT!" "I was having fun with Kirei and Hinata!" Naruto explained. "Wha---? Oh... You actually accomplished the dare!" Sakura asked, surprised.

"And then after that, we all got along and became best friends!" Naruto explained to Sakura, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Ino, Choji, (gasps for air) Kiba, Shino, Lee, Tenten, and Neji. Neji asked, "So, you succeeded... And made new friends in the process?" "Well, yes, Cousin Neji," Hinata protested, "Naruto is obviously very friendly and he loves to make new friends." "..." Neji stayed quiet for a while then asked his younger cousin, "Why would you talk to me after hiding for so long? Have you finally come out of your shell, Lady Hinata?" "Oh... I-I just feel like talking, that's all," Hinata told her cousin. "Hmm, I guess you can talk as long as you have the right to, Lady Hinata," Neji replied, "I'm sorry." "For what, Neji?" Hinata questioned. "I--- was wrong about you. I quickly stereotyped and assumed that you would always be a coward. So, will you ever forgive me, Lady Hinata?" Neji apologized. "...Apology accepted, Cousin Neji!" Hinata answered.

"So, what's the deal with you, Kirei? Why're you the heiress?" Naruto questioned. "Hmm? Oh, you're talking to me?" she asked. "Well, duh! Didn't I mention your name?" "Sorry… I'm the youngest heiress to the Tanaka crowns because my grandparents started up the village in the first place. The people decided that they would be the king and queen. So, in return, my father was the heir to his father's crown. After he earned the right to the king's crown, he met my mother and, later, married her. So, she became the queen of the Tanaka village. Of course, later they had---" "You, didn't they?" Lee interrupted. "Actually," Kirei replied, "my mother had my big brother, Kunahi. THEN, she had me." "You have a big brother?" asked Naruto. "Of course! I really don't know what I'd do if I was an only child. He's my inspiration," Kirei explained. "So you and your brother are going to inherit the Tanaka crowns," Neji answered. "Precisely," said Kirei, "but, it sort of works the other way around for us. I won't be the queen when my brother is the king because I'm his sister. When my parents decide Kunahi has earned his place as king, he will become king. If he meets a woman he wants to marry and he does, SHE becomes queen! But for me, when I become queen, I have to pick out who I like and HE has to ask me to marry him! blushes" Kirei explained. _I wonder..._ Neji thought.

After Kirei finished explaining to the others about her clan and the way it works, walked back to Hiroki and the others, and sat down with them.

_5 hours later..._

"I'm going for a stroll around the forest," Kirei told Hiroki, Rekai, and Hikari. "You want me to come with you?" Rekai asked. "No, that's okay," Kirei replied. "Oh... OK, Kirei... I guess you could go by---" "See ya then! I'll be back in a couple of hours!" Kirei replied.

"I'm going for a walk," Sasuke told Sakura and Naruto in his usual attitude-filled voice. "We'll go with you then!" Sakura offered in her usually officious manner. "No thanks... I want to go alone..." he replied. "Oh..." Sakura stayed quiet after his reply.

_It's so boring out here... There's nothing to do around here except talk! What can I do for fun?_ Kirei thought.

_I want to have some fun around here... There's really nothing to do... Although I DO want to find out more about Kirei..._ Sasuke thought.

Kirei sat down in front of a tree and wondered what to do.

Sasuke sat down in front of a tree and wondered what to do.

They both heard a noise behind themselves. They both looked back out of the corner of their eye and saw---

_Oh my gosh! It's that cute guy! Just act natural..._ Kirei turned back around and acted casual.

_It's Kirei... I really want to talk to her but... She seems uninterested..._ Sasuke turned back around and acted casual as well.

We now return from Sasuke and Kirei's mind to our regularly scheduled story... Thank you for caring Sasuke and Kirei...

---that they were sitting back to back in front of the same tree.

Then, all of a sudden... They both lunge for each other! I'm sorry... I like to add a little drama and stuff like that...

"screams Oh! I'm SO sorry! I don't know what happened!" Kirei apologized. "No, that's okay... I don't know what happened either... Uh..." Sasuke explained. They both noticed that they were holding hands.

Sasuke and Kirei looked at each other then blushed. Can you BELIEVE my crazy mind! I MADE SASUKE BLUSH!

Anyway, back to our story! Sasuke and Kirei pulled away from each other and, for a long time, blushed... Pretty cute, huh? "I am SO rude! I'm Tanaka Kirei, but of course, Iruka made it obvious didn't he?" Kirei introduced herself. "Uchiha Sasuke... I really don't-- gasp" They had lunged for each other again. This time, Kirei noticed something shining coming from Sasuke's wrist.

"Umm, Sasuke, your wrist is shining..." Kirei pulled back Sasuke's sleeve and saw that he was wearing a silver chain and two silver rectangles were hanging from it: the shining object.

"Your necklace is shining too," Sasuke told Kirei. And he was right. His chain and her necklace were shining and the freaky thing was, they looked the same: two silver rectangles hanging from both the chain and the necklace.

"You have the chain that goes with this necklace!" Kirei sounded surprised. "What about this chain?" Sasuke questioned. "Well, uh, you see---"

_POOF!_

A huge blanket of smoke puffed its grayish darkness into the air like an unseen cigar. When the smoke cleared, there was a guy of about 17 standing in the remains of the smoke.

"Aniki, big brother!" Kirei ran to the guy, jumped up, and hung around his neck. "How you doing, baby sister?" he asked. "I'm OK, Kunahi. How're mom and dad doing?" Kirei asked. "Well, uh, funny you should ask, sister dear... They had an accident and rolled off a cliff while making a sharp turn..." Kirei's brother replied. "Really? How can I trust you, big brother?" she asked. "Big brother?" Sasuke asked. "Oh, sorry Sasuke! This is my big brother, Kunahi! I've spent SO much time around him, that I've actually started being more like him. We both joke around with our parents and each other," Kirei explained to Sasuke. "Did you just call him Sasuke?" Kunahi asked, "Why don't I take you both to our house? It'll be really fun!"

So, without getting an answer, Kunahi took Sasuke and Kirei to their home by poofing there.

Kunahi and Kirei's home was very big: it had five bedrooms, four bathrooms, and three guestrooms, plus, it was a two-story. Sasuke gazed at the inside of their house and then looked at Kirei. He hadn't been around her for a long time, but it seemed as if they had known each other for a lifetime.

"Momma, daddy? It's me, I'm home!" Kirei called. "Kirei, we're over here," a deep voice called Kirei. "Daddy! Momma! I'm so glad to see you!" Kirei exclaimed. "And we're glad to see you, sweetie!" her mom said.

"Who's this?" her dad asked. He was referring to Sasuke. "Daddy, this is Uchiha Sasuke." she said and walked toward Sasuke. Sasuke slowly inched a teeny bit closer to Kirei.

Kirei's dad glared at Sasuke for a long time until his wife stopped him. "Remember what we talked about... You promised..." she warned him.

"WOOHOO! Alright, mom! NOW we're talkin'! I LOVE your cooking!" Kunahi hooted. "He reminds me of Kiba..." Sasuke told Kirei; she giggled.

Sasuke and Kirei went for a walk in the backyard. "Kirei, I really wanted to tell you something, I just don't know how to put it," Sasuke told Kirei. "What is it you want to tell me?" Kirei asked nervously.

"Ever since Iruka introduced you and the others, most, well, all of the guys fell in love with you, including me..." Sasuke explained. "Really? Well, I seemed uninterested when I really wasn't... I was looking at you the whole time..." Kirei told him. They both lunged for each other again, without any explanation, and suddenly locked lips.

They both wanted to pull away, but they couldn't... It was so passionate... Don't ask me how I know... I'm the creator of this fiction...

Then, they both stopped, eyes still closed, and then opened them. "Wow, that was so awesome," Kirei told Sasuke. "I think so too..." Sasuke said.

"Uchiha," Kirei's dad called Sasuke after him and Kirei both went inside, "walk with me around the back." Sasuke stared at him, confused, and then he turned back and looked at Kirei.

"It's okay, just go with him and PLEASE try not to act sarcastic. He likes being called _sir_ so, call him that occasionally, if you want, that is," Kirei told him.

"You know, Uchiha, my little girl needs a lot of taking care of... She's very strong both physically and mentally, but she sometimes lacks self-control. That's why I wanted you to come with me, so we could talk about my daughter," the king of the Tanaka village told Sasuke. "Why do you want to talk about Kirei, sir?" Sasuke questioned.

"Why do you call me _sir_, Sasuke?" he asked. "I just want to show you that I respect you, sir," Sasuke responded. "Hmph... Well, anyway, I've seen that you two have been holding hands and you're always close to each other... If anybody wanted to hear my opinion about you two, I'd say that you're in love with each other. Is it true, Uchiha?" Kirei's dad interrogated.

"...Yes, it is, sir," Sasuke told him. "...I knew it... Well, you have the right to have fallen in love with my daughter because if you didn't, you were going to anyway," he said. "What do you mean, sir?" Sasuke asked. "You two have been, since the day you were born, betrothed to each other. That's what Kirei's necklace and your chain signify," the king explained.

"Betrothed, what does that mean? It sounds familiar," Sasuke asked. "You don't know what it means? You and Kirei are destined to be married someday, Sasuke," he explained.

_Meanwhile, back at the house_...

"You know, Kirei, you and Sasuke are going to have a really bright future with each other," her mom said. "What do you mean, momma?" Kirei questioned her mother.

"Sweetheart, you and Sasuke have been destined to be married since you were born. That's why you wear that necklace and Sasuke wears that chain," her mother explained.

"!" Sasuke and Kirei were both surprised.

"You mean, all this time, we were engaged to each other?" Sasuke interrogated. "Of course! Your mother and my wife agreed that if one of them had either a daughter or a son and the other had a son or a daughter, they would give the son the chain and the daughter a necklace," Kirei's dad explained.

Kirei sleepily waddled to her bedroom. "yawns I'm so tired! As soon as Sasuke gets back, can you take us back to the forest, big brother?" Kirei asked Kunahi. "Sure thing, baby sister!" Kunahi called back.

Well, guess what? Sasuke got back right after she said it! Kunahi took Sasuke and Kirei back to the forest by, guess again, yup: poofing.

_POOF!_

So, they finally made it back... By 1:00 the next morning! Well, at least they made it back safely... Anyway, as Sasuke and Kirei walked back to their spot--- "Hey, you two, over here!" someone whispered... How many times do people have to keep interrupting me! "Follow me, we found a bunch of shacks for you all to sleep in for the next couple of nights," Kakashi explained.

They made it to the shacks and found that everyone was asleep. "Well, see you tomorrow morning?" Sasuke asked. "Definitely," Kirei answered. She leaned forward and kissed Sasuke.

Kirei walked into her shack, dressed into her nightgown, and jumped right into bed. "Sasuke," Kakashi called, "our shack is over here." Kakashi cocked his head toward Shack 7. "OUR shack?" Sasuke asked. "Even though we have new shinobi," Kakashi explained, "we have to stay as one cell. Even the shack has our cell number on there!"

Sasuke hopped right into bed and fell right to sleep. All of a sudden, "Sasuke, get up. It's time to wake," Kakashi whispered.

Sasuke groaned as he awoke from his short slumber. He rubbed his eyes and squinted at the sunlight. "How long was I asleep?" Sasuke asked. "I'd say about 6 hours," Kakashi answered. Sasuke once again groaned.

Kirei stretched as she yawned and also squinted at the sunlight. She grabbed her washcloth and ran to the river. As soon as she got to the river, she sat next to the river and washed up when all of a sudden…

…Kirei gave a huge gasp as she felt a cold hand on her shoulder pull her back into the deepest, darkest parts of the forest.

To be continued…


	2. Chapter 2

_Oh, yeah! That feels good! Sorry..._

_I get uncontrollable very, very_

_often... Hmm... Well, anyway,_

_The second part of my fiction is here!_

_Last time, Kirei was pulled into the..._

_Oh, yeah! The deepest, darkest parts of_

_The forest! ... Oh, well! Enjoy peoples!_

So anyway, Kirei felt a cold hand that pulled her back into the deepest, darkest parts of the forest. She gasped and then screamed like crazy. "LET GO OF ME, YOU FREAK!" Kirei screamed. "Whoa, hold on!" said a familiar voice. Kirei paused to look at the face of her captor and saw Neji's face. "Hey, you're that other Hyuga, Hinata's cousin!" Kirei gasped, "Why are you jacking me?" "I'm not _jacking_ you... I--- want to talk to you..." Neji explained. "Why would _you_ want to talk to _me_?" Kirei questioned. "You see," Neji explained, "I had heard from my uncle and my father that the Tanaka clan goes along the best with the Hyuga clan, and I think we should be... together..."

"Me with you?" Kirei questioned slowly, "I'm really sorry but... I'm with Sasuke right now and he and I are going to get married someday whether anyone likes it or not..."

"Well, at least... gulps ... go out with me one day..." Neji offered. "Umm, well, maybe I could, if Sasuke lets me, that is... I'll find out later..." Kirei answered.

_Later..._

"He asked you what?" Sasuke asked as if he'd never heard of walking. "You heard me Sasuke... I really don't want him to feel bad, but you're the ONLY guy for me," Kirei explained. "But that's just wrong! Borrowing someone's girlfriend for one day!" Naruto confirmed. "I know, Naruto... But, I don't like saying _no_... Besides, my dad said that I would meet a worthy enough Hyuga one day although I have Sasuke..." Kirei answered. "Go ahead, be with him," Sasuke told Kirei, "but it'd BETTER be for ONE day." _Sasuke..._ Kirei thought. She nodded and walked off. "Sasuke, you're going to let her go just like that?" Sakura asked. "I'm not letting her go; she's still mine no matter what happens..." Sasuke explained.

"Alright, Neji, we accept your offer... But only for ONE day!" Kirei told Neji. "Exactly one day, got it. Actually, now half a day... 5 hours have already past..." he explained.

_11 hours & 30 minutes later..._

_30 more minutes left... Hurry up, you stupid clock!_ Kirei glared at the clock on the wall as each second ticked by while sitting next to Neji.

Finally, Neji was falling asleep about 30 seconds before it was time to let Kirei go. _25...24...23...22...21..._ Kirei counted the seconds. _17...16...15...14... Just a few more left! 5...4...3...2...1..._ "Goodbye, _Neji_!" Kirei took off running toward Shack 11.

Kirei jumped into bed and fell asleep right away. Next thing she knew, "Kirei... Get up..." Hiroki threw his pillow at his cousin.

Kirei shot herself at Hiroki and started strangling him, playfully though... "What the heck is wrong with you, Hiroki? Can't you see I'm trying to sleep?" Kirei questioned. "I can see that VERY clearly..." Hiroki replied. "What are you two doing?" Hikari muttered.

"Nothing's going on... I'm just trying to get some sleep around here..." Kirei explained and hopped from her cousin's bed to hers.

"I think that qualifies as SOMETHING," Rekai told Kirei. At the sound of this, Kirei threw her own pillow toward Rekai's face. "Alright, geez, I'll leave you alone!" Rekai playfully said.

Kirei finally woke up about four hours after her disturbance at 4:00 in the morning. She stretched and then leaped off of her bed. She grabbed her washcloth and ran to the river as before. After she washed up, she dashed back to her cabin to put away her stuff and then she walked to the clearing to meet Sasuke.

This girl's pretty fast, don't you think?

Sasuke was leaning against a tree, gazing at the sky, waiting for Kirei. "So there you are," Sasuke said, "Did you sleep late or did you sleep late?" "Both," Kirei giggled. They got close to each other and hugged. "So what now?" she asked. "I don't know... It's been about 2 days since you guys showed up... Maybe they're making last minute adjustments to the new environment..." Sasuke said. "Wait a minute..." Kirei paused,"gasps I know what it is! They're trying to figure out what they're going to do to Hikari, Rekai, Hiroki, and me because they know there aren't enough Jonin to lead us, so maybe they're trying to figure something out because of that problem!"

Can this girl talk, or what! clears throat Sorry... And now, back to our story, I mean fan fiction!

Sasuke looked at her for a long time and then said, "That's completely possible... Maybe it's true." Kirei paused for a second and then breathed, "Yeah, maybe..."

Kirei said goodbye to Sasuke and ran off to her cabin. Just as she was about to leap onto her bed, she noticed a flyer on the bed. She picked up the flyer and examined it.

Meanwhile, Sakura and Ino were competing in a glaring contest with Tenten as the referee. They had glared and glared at each other for about 5 minutes when suddenly, a flyer swooped in and blinded Sakura's vision. "HAH! I win at last!" Ino gloated. "Wait a minute, Ino," Tenten declared, "Sakura is not disqualified... What is that paper, anyway?" Sakura paused and looked at the flyer, "I don't know..." Meanwhile, Hinata was caught in the middle of an argument between Temari, Kin, and Hikari. "I think you should apologize for tripping me, Hikari!" "Uh-uh! I think _you_ need to apologize for tripping _me_, Temari!" "Will both of you just shut up! Besides, I tripped _both_ of you..." Temari and Hikari stopped gabbing and glared at Kin... Then, they growled and attacked her. "Umm... Excuse me, but..." Hinata whispered, "_QUIET_!" Temari, Hikari, and Kin stared at Hinata. "Look at that paper under you..." Hinata explained. Temari picked up the paper and looked at it.

Kirei: Attention all kunoichi...

Sakura, Ino, and Tenten: You have been cordially invited to the annual kunoichi ablution...

Hinata, Hikari, Temari, and Kin: Actually, we don't think you have any choice at all... You will come whether you like it or not...

Together: Come tomorrow by the lake at... 4:00 A.M.! Signed... MITARASHI ANKO _AND_ YUHI KURENAI!

The next morning at 4:00 a.m., the girls were up quicker than you can say _bath time..._ Huh...

They grabbed their towels, bathing suits, soap bars, washcloths, shampoos, conditioner, and, of course, headbands. They met at the pond and sat for a long time...

_POOF!_

coughs The fog gagged, choked, and blinded all the girls except for Kirei... She stared into the fog and saw Anko and Kurenai standing and waiting for the fog to clear. "Hmm?" Kurenai noticed that Kirei was the only one that wasn't gagging or coughing. "Is that her, Anko?" Anko looked and then sighed, "Yep, that's her... It's pretty obvious that that's her... I mean, look at her! She's the only kunoichi that can withstand the fog!"

Kurenai sighed and walked toward the girls. "Welcome, young kunoichi! I'm sure that most of you know me as Yuhi Kurenai. And I _know_ that you remember Mitarashi Anko as you proctor for the second Chunin Exam. Anyway, I hope you all remembered to bring your supplies," Kurenai announced. "All right, let's get started!" Anko yelled.

"This stinks, big time! I mean, where the heck did all the girls go!" Naruto protested. _Where could she be? _Sasuke wondered. "HINATA! HINATA, HEY, CAN YOU HEAR ME!" Naruto called. "Shut up, you moron," Neji told Naruto, "Try to calm down; I'm sure she'll turn up somewhere..."

Meanwhile, the girls stripped down to their bathing suits and waited in front of the lake as instructed. Finally, Kurenai and Anko showed up in bathing suits as well. Scary, huh? Can't you just imagine _them_ in _bathing suits_? Uh-oh... They're glaring at me... Better get back to our story...

"Alright, now that you all are properly dressed, let's get down to the ablution!" Kurenai yelled. "You'll all walk, or run, into the lake and..." Anko paused. "Have fun!" they both insiste--- Hey, wait a minute! Have fun! What's the deal with that! 'Have fun!'laughs

All the girls, including Hinata, ran into the lake. They all splashed around and had fun just as they were told. Hinata was feeling better because she was around her kunoichi friends, but depressed because she wasn't with Naruto. "What's wrong, Hinata? Aren't you having fun?" Kirei asked. "Uh, you haven't seen Naruto, have you?" Hinata questioned. "Well, we wouldn't see him right now because this is _girls only_... But I think I can bring him over here without him getting caught..." Kirei answered. "How?" Hinata asked. "Could you do me a favor, Hinata?" Kirei pleaded, "Could you use your Byakugan to find out where Naruto and the others are, please?" "Byakugan!" Hinata used her all-seeing eye and found that all the guys were sitting down in the middle of the clearing, depressed. "They're all in the middle of the clearing," Hinata replied. "Alright, thanks, Hinata! You're a great friend! Now, excuse me while I _try_ to contact Hiroki..."

Kirei sat down in the shallow water and concentrated. _Hiroki, can you hear me?_ Kirei called out, in her mind. Not too far into the forest, Hiroki and Rekai sat and waited when suddenly, Hiroki heard Kirei calling. _Kirei? Yeah, I can hear you. Where the freak are you?_ Hiroki asked. _We're at an ablution in the lake. Bring everyone that wants to come with you. But you've got to hide in a spot where nobody but Hinata and me can see you, okay?_ Kirei asked. _Gotcha, Kirei!_ Hiroki replied. "Hey, Rekai! I just finished chatting with Kirei. She told me to tell everyone to head toward the lake," Hiroki told Rekai. "So?" Rekai breathed. Jerk... "So spread the word! Oh, and we have to hide really good so Kurenai and Anko can't see us," Hiroki replied.

This is going to be very long... I'm sorry! So, Rekai told Sasuke, who told Naruto, who told Kiba, who told Shino, who told Lee, who told Neji, who told Kankuro, who told Gaara, who told Dosu, who told Zaku, who got excited to see Kirei. YAY! It wasn't very long after all!

So the guys followed Hiroki and Rekai to the lake and hid very well. "Where are they?" Zaku eagerly asked. "Why do _you_ want to know, pretty boy?" asked Sasuke suspiciously. "Heh, look who's talking!" Zaku smirked. Sasuke glared at Zaku and Zaku glared back until Dosu and Naruto broke them up.

"Hey, there they are!" Naruto cried, "Wonder what they're all doing..." "It's an ablution," Neji answered. "An ab-what?" Naruto asked. "An ablution. It's the washing of one's or someone else's body or parts of it for certain reasons. Like a bath, Naruto. This looks like a kunoichi ablution. That's why they wanted us to come secretly," Neji continued, "It's girls only."

Kirei and Hinata quietly went around and told all the girls that the boys were coming to see them. They got excited and sneaked a few glances wherever they could when Kurenai and Anko weren't looking. "There they are!" Hinata cheered silently. The girls looked up and saw the boys waving at them. The girls smiled at them and waved back.

Tenten looked up at Hiroki and blushed at what she saw. Hiroki was waving at her only. Tenten hesitated and waved back. After the boys went back to hiding behind the bushes, Tenten ran off to tell Kirei what she saw.

"Kirei, you won't believe what I saw!" Tenten cried as she ran toward the young pride of the Tanaka clan. "What'd you see, Tenten?" Kirei asked. "Your cousin was waving at me in the cutest way!" Tenten cried as she blushed. "Tenten, I have to tell you something," Kirei said, "Hiroki has the hots for you!" Tenten turned redder than ever and stood stiffly for a long time. "He does? Really?" Tenten asked eagerly. "Would I lie to you?" Kirei replied.

Naruto poked his head out of the bushes and saw Hinata walking alone. _This is gonna be fun!_ Naruto squealed in his mind. He crawled back behind a tree and, without being seen, walked away to meet Hinata.

Naruto hid in the trees close to where Hinata was splashing around. Hinata walked backwards and then heard a noise. "Hey, Hinata, over here!" a voice whispered. "Who said that?" Hinata asked, frightened. "It's me, Naruto! I'm in the trees!" Naruto called, silently. Hinata stared into the trees and saw two big, blue eyes. She let out a short, high-pitched yelp as Naruto pulled her into the trees with him. "Naruto-kun... What's going on?" Hinata asked quietly. "I couldn't wait to talk to you!" Naruto cried silently, "Ever since that day we met Kirei, I cherished that moment we had before we introduced ourselves to Kirei. When we got close and---" Naruto and Hinata moved closer to each other as they did before and this time, their lips were about 3 centimeters away from each other, and Naruto pushed Hinata toward him so each of them could have their very first kiss.

Naruto and Hinata gazed into each other's eyes as they kissed. They closed their Hinata closed her eyes about five seconds after it started. Naruto closed his eyes after she did. Then, they let go.

"Wow!" Naruto cried silently. "Oh, Naruto-kun... I want to tell you something..." Hinata blurted. "What is it, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked eagerly. "...When I looked at you, there was an impact on my heart..." Naruto's eyes widened as Hinata spilled her feelings onto him. "Naruto-kun... _You_ were the reason I fought back when I had to fight Neji... I wanted to look good in front of you. And I wanted you to be proud of me. I wanted to be like you, confident, friendly, outgoing, strong, and brave. Naruto... I love you!" Hinata closed her eyes and blushed as she said that last sentence. "Hinata... Thank you," Naruto thanked Hinata and then got close to her and kissed her once more. "Hinata, where are you?" voices called. "I forgot! I have to go back to the group!" Naruto smacked his hand on his forehead as he remembered the boys. "What group?" Hinata questioned. "All the guys are here, Hinata! You see that bush right there? That's where we're hiding! Don't tell Kurenai or Anko, okay?" Naruto pointed to the bush that the boys were hiding behind. With that, Hinata and Naruto kissed once more and Naruto ran off to hide behind the bush.

Hinata struggled to get out of the trees but she managed to crawl out. "There you are, Hinata!" Kirei ran toward Hinata, "Where've you been?" "Umm, Naruto-kun and I were talking in the trees..." Hinata confessed. "Oh, yeah, Naruto and the rest are here. But I bet he told you that didn't he?"

Sasuke looked down and saw Kirei, who was looking up as well. She smiled and waved. Sasuke paused and then did the same thing. They make a cute couple don't they? Even though you don't know what Kirei looks like...

Anyway, Sakura was sitting alone on a rock in the middle of the lake. "What's wrong, Sakura?" Ino sat down next to a depressed Sakura. "sighs I'm confused, Ino... I...need your help..." Sakura confessed. "You want _my_ help?" Ino asked, surprised, "Well, what do you need help with?" "It's about my feelings for Sasuke... I'm not sure I like him anymore," Sakura confessed. "What! How could you _not_ like Sasuke anymore!" Ino cried. Sakura looked down, "Haven't you heard? Ino, Sasuke isn't available anymore..." _What?_ Ino thought. "What do you mean he isn't available anymore? Does, uh, he have a-a gulps girlfriend?" Ino nervously asked. She stared at Sakura with wide, pale blue eyes as Sakura nodded her head. "But, how can that be? Who is she?" Ino demanded. "It's Kirei... Please don't hate her, Ino! She's a kind, loving person! She deserves Sasuke, and I mean that. I want you to say it, too, Ino. You know that she's a great person, a great friend, and she's probably a good girlfriend, too! Please say it for her, Ino..." Sakura pleaded.

Ino pondered through her mind, trying to find the answer to her dilemma. _Maybe Sakura's right, she does deserve Sasuke! But I don't want to say it because I don't want to let Sasuke go..._ Ino thought. "Sakura..." Ino said, "You're right!"

_Ino... I'm sorry..._ Sakura guiltily thought. "Kirei's a very good friend. In fact, she's like a sister to me! She's probably like a sister to everyone!" Ino cried. "You're right, Ino. Kirei _is_ like a sister to me!" Sakura replied.

The last 10 minutes of the ablution ended and Kurenai and Anko finally dismissed the girls. They dressed in their regular clothes and headed back toward the clearing.

As soon as Hinata saw Naruto, she ran toward him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "_Is that Hinata and Naruto, kissing?_" Kiba cried. "Woof, woof, woof, woof!" Akamaru barked. "What do ya mean _true love_, boy?" Kiba couldn't believe it. "It looks like Hinata finally told him the truth," Shino told Kiba. "...Oh, yeah! I remember now!" Kiba remembered.

Kirei ran up to Sasuke and they kissed for about 20 seconds. Pretty long time for a young couple... Oh, well...

As Tenten followed Neji and Lee through the forest, she heard a rustling noise coming from the bushes. She glanced at the bushes and saw Hiroki leaning on a tree. She gasped and then blushed because she hadn't been that close to him before. "Uh, hi, Hiroki," Tenten gasped. "Hi, Tenten. I've been waiting to talk to you for a long time. And I mean a _really_ long time," Hiroki walked toward Tenten. Tenten tripped, but Hiroki caught her before she could land.

Hiroki smiled at Tenten and she smiled back. Hiroki pulled Tenten back up and they both sat down on the ground. "Hey, Tenten?" Hiroki asked. "Yeah?" she replied. "Do you want to go out with me?" Hiroki asked. Tenten blushed and then said, "Yes!" Without warning, Hiroki lunged for Tenten's lips and locked them with his. He let go about 30 seconds later and said goodbye before walking back to his cabin, leaving a stunned and blushing Tenten behind.

Rekai sat down and ran through the images of Kirei having fun in the water at the ablution. She was splashing others and laughing and running around in her bathing suit. _Kirei... You're the love of my life, Kirei. I don't know how to tell you... If only I could gain enough courage to tell you... If only..._ Rekai thought.

"Hey, Rekai!" a familiar voice came from behind him, "It's time to go to bed! Come on!" "Oh, it's you. Alright, I'm coming Kirei," Rekai followed Kirei toward their cabin. "Where's Hikari?" Kirei asked. "I don't know," Rekai replied, "I'm sure she ran off somewhere."

Shikamaru sat down next to Choji as he munched away on his potato chips as usual... "What a drag... I have to baby-sit you again... This is going to take _forever_..." Shikamaru complained. "Quit whining, you cutie!" "_What did you say, Choji?_" Shikamaru cried. "I didn't say anything!" Choji replied. Shikamaru and Choji looked toward the shadows that the trees were casting and saw two eyes looking at them.

Hikari emerged from the shadows, "Hi, there, cutie!" "Who are you talking to?" Shikamaru nervously asked. "Well, you, of course!" she replied. Shikamaru was surprised as Hikari walked toward him and sat down on the log next to him. "Ever since the introduction, I've been waiting to meet you! Your name's Shikamaru, isn't it?"

"Uh, yeah. And you're Hikari, right?" Shikamaru replied. "Yep! I think it's cute, the way you whine all the time! I know life can be such a pain sometimes but... Don't you _ever_ see an upside to things, cutie?" Hikari asked. "... Well, I guess there's an upside to everything, like now," Shikamaru flirted with Hikari. Hikari blushed and leaned forward to plant a single kiss on Shikamaru's lips. "See ya tomorrow, cutie!" Hikari walked to her cabin.

"So, there you are, Hikari! Where've you been, young lady?" Kirei asked. "I had a little business to take care of with Shikamaru," Hikari explained. "Let's get to bed; I'm getting tired! yawns" Hiroki said. They listened to their friend and walked into their cabin, dressed into their night clothes, and climbed into their beds.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was tossing and turning in his bed. "Something wrong, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked. Sasuke sat up, "I can't help but think that something's going to happen tomorrow..." "Something bad?" Kakashi asked. "No, but it's something about our three-man cells," Sasuke said. "Well, we'll worry about it tomorrow. But for now, get some rest, Sasuke," Kakashi assured him. With that, Sasuke fell asleep and slept through the night peacefully.

The next morning, Kakashi woke up Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura early. "Time to wake up, you guys!" Kakashi yelled. "yawns What time is it!" Naruto cried. "Yeah, sensei, why did you wake us up this early?" Sakura questioned. Sasuke said nothing as he tried to open his eyes to see properly. "There's no time to explain, we've got to get there _now_," Kakashi said.

As they were told, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura got ready and met in the clearing. Everybody was there, and I mean _everybody_. Yup, it was _that_ important! Anyway, Hiroki, Rekai, Hikari, and Kirei were standing on the ground waiting for orders. "Ahem, if I could get your attention, please!" Iruka announced, "We are now ready to begin our new rules!" _This is it..._ Kirei thought.

To be continued...

Well, that's the end of the second chapter, but there's one thing that I have to settle. When are we going to see what Kirei, Hiroki, Hikari, and Rekai look like? I'll try to post a picture of them in the next chapter. Until next time!


	3. Chapter 3

_YAY! Finally, the third_

_Part of my fiction! This is so_

_Exciting! Anyway, in the last chapter,_

_Iruka-sensei finally started to announce_

_The new rules. What could they be?_

"Now listen carefully, everyone!" Iruka continued, "The new rules consist of traumatic changes that could make all of your lives totally different. Are you ready? The new rule is four-man cells that will only exist between these four groups of Konoha ninja!"

_What?_ Everybody thought. "And now, here is the 5th Hokage to adjust the four-man cells," Iruka introduced Tsunade.

"Good morning, everybody! We're all terribly sorry to have pulled you out of bed this early, but this is an extremely important event. I hope that you all got to know these young, new ninja from the Tanaka clan," Tsunade continued, "If I could get some hands up for questions, please!"

The first to raise his hand was Kiba. "Yes, Kiba?" Tsunade called. "If the rule is setting four-man cells, then will we all be separated from our original adjustments?" Kiba questioned.

"No, you won't be separated, but I will insert either one of these four," Tsunade referred to Kirei, Hiroki, Rekai, and Hikari, "into a cell. And as Iruka said, this will only apply to these four groups. Is that understood?" Tsunade questioned.

"Yes, ma'm!" everybody answered. "Good! Now, let's begin!" Tsunade cried. "First up, Tanaka Hikari, Kurenai Cell Number 8," Tsunade motioned Hikari to walk toward her new teammates, "Next, Tanaka Hiroki, Guy Cell Number ," Hiroki did the same, "Tanaka Rekai, Asuma Cell Number 10, and last but not least, Tanaka Kirei, Kakashi Cell Number 7!" Rekai walked to his place, depressed, and Kirei shined as she walked to her new cell.

Ino glanced at Sasuke and noticed that he had is arm around Kirei's waist. _Huh... So it's true... I don't blame him for being close to her!_ Ino thought.

"Now that the arrangements are done, you may go about your business!" Tsunade called, "And by business, I mean missions and stuff like that!"

With that, Kakashi ordered his cell to follow him. "Where are we going, sensei?" Sakura asked. "We're going on a mission," he answered, "A mission that I arranged to be done a long time ago, before Kirei joined us." Kakashi looked at Kirei. "What sort of mission, sensei?" Kirei questioned. Kakashi looked away, "It's a C-ranked mission."

"Another one? What is it this time?" Sasuke asked. "I'll explain later, but for now, let's get to our destination," Kakashi replied.

Isn't that getting a little often now? I'll explain later... It's a little suspicious, don't you think?

Anyway, when they got to their destination, it was about 5 hours after Kirei had joined them. They were about to cross a bridge when Kakashi paused and turned around. "Alright, we're here!" Kakashi said. "We can tell," Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and Kirei said. "We have to capture an item for the old woman who lives in this area," Kakashi explained. "What's the item?" Naruto asked.

"It's a golden necklace that has been passed down by her family from generation to generation. And it has been stolen from her by a dangerous criminal," Kakashi explained.

"So, that's it?" Kirei asked. "Yep, that's it!" Kakashi smiled, "Now, let's get across this bridge to meet the criminal." Kakashi walked step by step across the bridge, his students following him. After Sasuke crossed the middle of the bridge, one of the boards cracked and fell, and about five boards behind fell after it, leaving a gap between Kakashi, Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke and Kirei.

Kirei stared at the gap between her and her teammates. _Think, Kirei, think!_ she cupped her head in her hands. She looked up as she finally got an idea.

_The sides are still up... If I could just get a small running start so I could jump onto the ledge and run across the gap, then I could make it to the other side, I hope..._ Kirei thought.

So, as she had planned, she backed away about 1 foot and ran toward the left side of the bridge, jumped on, and ran the rest of the way through. She made it to the other side, but before she jumped back onto the bridge, she tripped and almost fell through the gap.

Luckily, Kakashi grabbed her arm before she fell. Kirei looked down at the huge fall she could have been part of. She looked up at Kakashi and smiled one of those smiles like a little kid would if she would have been caught doing something wrong by an adult. Kakashi quietly laughed and patted Kirei's head, which made her smile like a little girl. "That could have turned out horribly!" Kakashi told Kirei, "Quite a little stunt you pulled off!"

They kept walking and finally came upon the criminal's hideout. There was a problem though: there was no way to continue walking because the ground was gone. The only thing that led to the huge building was a pipe.

"Hah! The big building gives the hideout away!" Naruto smirked. "Hmm..." Kakashi sighed. "What's wrong, Master Kakashi?" Kirei asked. "Well, it seems that there's no way to get in if the ground is gone... We'll have to retreat and find a way through," Kakashi explained. Kirei looked at the pipe and finally said, "We shouldn't have to... There _is_ a way to get in." Kakashi looked at her and then at the pipe, "You're not seriously thinking about---!" "Yeah…!" Kirei interrupted.

Kirei stepped back as before and ran, jumped onto the pipe and ran across it. Pretty brave of her, huh? As she kept running, the pipe followed her path and broke. She kept running and saw a ladder that was coming closer and closer to her. As she approached the ladder, she jumped off of the pipe and grabbed the ladder. She hung from it, looking down into the endless fall she could have plunged into.

"Whoa, Kirei, that was awesome!" Naruto cried. Kirei smiled at Naruto and she climbed up the ladder. About halfway up the ladder, her hand slipped as she grabbed one of the rungs. Kakashi, Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke looked on in horror as Kirei looked into the eternal fall with one hand on a rung.

Kirei lifted her hanging arm and placed her hand on the next rung. She lifted her body up and continued climbing at a pace that no other great climber could master. "Look at her go, guys!" Naruto was amazed. And he wasn't the only one who was. Kakashi, Sasuke, and Sakura looked at how fast Kirei was climbing the ladder in disbelief.

She finally made it to the top and climbed through the window at the top of the ladder. Once she got through the window, she ran to a window where she could hang a rope from the window to pull her teammates and her teacher into the building.

When everybody was inside, Kakashi started explaining what to do, "Alright, here's what you have to do, so listen carefully! Kirei, Naruto, you go and check on the culprit and try to find that necklace where he's at. Sasuke, Sakura, you and I will check where he's not at, got it?" "Got it!" they said quietly.

Naruto and Kirei walked quietly towards the criminal's room. "Hey, Kirei, how do you know where his room is? I mean, you're just walking straight through the building like you've been here before," Naruto questioned.

"There are hints everywhere, Naruto. Look on that wall over there. There's a sign that says _My Room_ and another that says _Bathroom_..." Kirei explained.

Naruto looked at the obvious signs and smirked. "Hah! This guy's so dumb, that he needs signs to get around his hideout!" Naruto laughed. "Could you do me a favor, Naruto? Crawl toward that door and stay behind me. When we reach the doorway, carefully poke your head out a little bit into the doorway so you can see with at least one eye, okay?" Kirei instructed. "Okay!" Naruto agreed, quietly though.

They crawled toward the door as they agreed and peeked through the doorway. They were shocked when they saw that the robber was asleep. Kirei looked at the robber. _How sad… That criminal's very young… He looks like he's Kunahi's age…_ The robber had short, brown hair, and he was holding a book in his hand, which was dangling to the side.

"Oh, Naruto!" Kirei quietly said. "What's wrong?" Naruto asked Kirei. "… That's not the criminal… That boy's trapped in the real criminal's jutsu…" "What do you mean?" Naruto asked. "I've heard about this guy--- he's bad news…" Kirei explained, "His specialty is using a jutsu that lures young people into his lair and taking over their minds and bodies. He wants you to think that the child is the criminal so that when you're trying to outrun the kid, he runs up to you and snatches you. What does he do to you? He locks you in the basement of this building, so that when the kid he's using gets old, he can use the next kid in line…" "… How horrible!" Naruto looked at the boy. "The criminal is known as Okugai," Kirei informed Naruto.

"Well, robber or not, we've gotta get past this kid to find the necklace, right?" Naruto asked. Kirei looked at a dresser in the room and saw a purple plant sitting in a pot. There was something shiny hanging around the stem of the plant--- the necklace!

Well, whaddya know! They finally found the necklace after 17 paragraphs of nonstop talk! _BOOOORRRRING_!

Kirei slowly entered the room. "What the heck do you think you're doing, Kirei? Get back here!" Naruto scolded Kirei. "How else are we going to hope to pass this mission?" Kirei reminded.

As I was saying, Kirei slowly entered the room and started tiptoeing toward the plant. As she got closer to it, she noticed that it was no ordinary plant. It was one of those dangerous man-eating plants. You know, man-eating plants. Man-eating plants! Like from The Fairly Oddparents when Timmy gave the seemingly dangerous plant to Trixie… And in Super Mario Bros. when Mario has to jump over the pipes in order to _not_ get eaten by the giant man-eating plants.

Anyway, Kirei inched closer and closer to the plant. And then, suddenly, the boy snorted and Kirei stopped cold. Naruto wanted to jump in there in drag Kirei back outside the room, but he knew that she really wanted to try.

The boy went back to sleeping normally and Kirei went back to trying to grab the necklace. When her hand was a millimeter away from the necklace, the plant hissed.

Kirei pulled her hand back and gaped at the plant. It grew at least five inches taller and it opened its mouth to hiss at Kirei again. Kirei gulped and touched the bottom of the pot that contained the plant as it continued to hiss at her.

"Mahou no Te…" Kirei whispered. Naruto stared on as Kirei's fingertips lit up a small, white light. The plant fell asleep and Kirei grabbed the necklace carefully. As she removed her fingers from the pot, the plant woke up and gave a bloodcurdling screech.

The boy's eyes peeled open and he stared at the ceiling angrily. Kirei and Naruto covered their ears as they watched the boy slowly stand up to meet Kirei's eyes. Kirei stared back at the boy's blank, brown eyes. Kirei clutched the necklace, "Naruto, run!" "What about you!" Naruto asked. "Don't worry about me! Just get Master Kakashi, Sasuke, and Sakura out of the building, fast!" Kirei commanded. Naruto looked at Kirei and wondered if she was going to be okay. "Go, Naruto, run!" Kirei yelled. Naruto nodded and raced to meet his teammates and sensei. _I wonder if I made the right decision… I left Kirei all by herself with that weird kid…! Sasuke's gonna kill me!_ Naruto thought.

Kakashi, Sasuke, and Sakura left the room they were in and closed the door carefully. "Well, it's not in there either…" Kakashi said. "That's the seventeenth time you've said that…" Sakura complained. "I wonder how Kirei and Naruto are doing… I hope they're okay… Especially Kirei…" Sasuke worried.

"Are you worried, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked. "About Kirei, yeah," Sasuke explained, "Naruto… I'm afraid he'll blow our cover…" "KAKASHI-SENSEI, KAKASHI-SENSEI!" "You're right…" Kakashi said.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto slowed down to gasp for air. "What is it now Naru---" "Where's Kirei?" Sasuke demanded to know. "I left her, but only cause she told me to! She's with a kid! We have to get out of here, now!" "RRROOOAAAARRRR!" scream flows throughout the building

"Kirei!" Naruto and Sasuke ran upstairs towards the room. The door slammed open and what Sasuke and Naruto saw scared them stiff.

Kirei was lying on the floor in front of a huge monster. "HAH, HAH, HAH! ANOTHER VICTIM FOR MY COLLECTION!" the creature hooted. "Oh, no, you don't!" Naruto and Sasuke threw their kunai at the monster and managed to make him, or it, bleed. Sasuke scrambled onto the floor to check if Kirei was still alive and breathing.

He was horrified to find a huge puddle of blood coming from her mouth. He lifted her up and carried her to the doorway. The monster screamed in pain as Sasuke checked for Kirei's pulse. Suddenly, Kirei coughed and opened her eyes. "Sasuke…" Kirei said, "What happened?" "You weren't breathing…" Sasuke hugged Kirei. Kirei looked at her hand and saw that she was still clutching the necklace. "Sasuke, I still have the necklace!" Kirei told Sasuke. "What?" Sasuke questioned. "Oh, yeah, forgot to tell ya! She grabbed the necklace!" Naruto explained.

The monster roared again. "Where are Master Kakashi and Sakura?" Kirei questioned. "They ran outside, just like you told me to tell them!" Naruto explained. They looked at the monster. "Sasuke, Naruto, you've got to run! I'll run somewhere else so we can keep him confused," Kirei said. "You can't do this! You're hurt very badly!" Sasuke commanded. "Don't worry about me- I'll be fine!" Kirei leaned forward and kissed Sasuke once on the lips. She pushed both Naruto and Sasuke out the door and ran opposite the direction they were running, which was upstairs. "You think she'll be okay?" Naruto asked. "……Yeah…" Sasuke answered.

Kirei clutched the necklace as she ran up to the top of the building--- the roof. Kirei ran up one more flight up stairs and looked back, only to see the monster catching up to her, and fast. She looked back up and got a taste of cold, hard concrete as her face met the wall. She rubbed her face and looked back. She screamed as she leapt out of the way of the monster. It too crashed into the wall, and Kirei continued to run up the stairs.

Finally, she ran into the door and slid it open. She closed it shut and ran to the edge of the roof. She looked down and saw Kakashi and the others waiting for her. She heard the door crash down and looked back. The monster was breathing heavily and looking at Kirei coldly. Kirei stepped back but stopped after she almost fell off of the building. She threw kunai and shuriken at the monsters huge, green eyes and arms.

The monster screeched in pain and glared at Kirei. Kirei looked at the ground and finally at the wall below her feet. There was a rope hanging from the building to a tree close to where Sasuke and the others were. _If I do this, I risk my life… If I stay here, I'll do the same…_ Kirei thought. She decided to go for option number 1--- run across the rope to the tree.

Kirei threw one last kunai knife to the monster's left eye and jumped onto the thin rope. Kakashi, Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura stared in horror at Kirei and couldn't believe the stunt she was performing.

Kirei ran across the rope with ease. Then, the rope wobbled violently. Kirei jumped off of the rope and landed about three feet in front of where she had been, almost falling into the shallow, rapid waters rushing below. She looked back and saw that the monster was trying to walk on the rope, but it finally fell off after stepping onto the rope with one foot. It roared all the way down to the bloody impact of its flesh to the sharp boulders below.

Kirei breathed a sigh of relief and made her way to her teammates. _I guess **those** powers are working now… My cat-like instincts are taking over…_ Kirei thought. As soon as she reached the tree, she hopped off to meet her teammates. When she got down, she got a hug and kiss from Sasuke. And I mean **_from_** Sasuke.

"Are you alright, Kirei?" Kakashi asked. "Yeah, I'm fine!" Kirei replied. "You sure? It doesn't look like it… You have a cut on your cheek, arm, and a huge scratch on your stomach…" Sakura pointed out.

Kirei looked at her various scrapes and cuts, "Oh… I'll be fine Sakura." "Kirei, do you have the necklace?" Kakashi asked. "Oh, yeah, I do!" Kirei showed her mentor (sort of) the gold necklace.

"Object retrieved… Now let's go deliver it to the woman…" Kakashi ordered his squad.

After walking for about 2 hours, they finally made it to a small but cozy-looking house. Kakashi softly knocked on the door and waited for a reply. After about 5 seconds, the soft, muffled voice of a kind, old woman answered, "Come in, children!"

Kakashi and his team opened the door and entered the home. "Well, what marvelous, little angels you are!" an old woman was sitting on a chair in the house's main room.

"Are you the ones who were sent on a task to retrieve my necklace?" the woman asked. "Yes, we're here to return your necklace," Kakashi handed the necklace to the old woman. "Ah, yes! My family heirloom… Do you have any idea how long this necklace has been passed down in my family, young children?" she asked. Squad 7 shook their heads.

"This necklace has been passed down for about four centuries," the woman replied. "Wow, that's a long time…" Kirei answered. "Yeah, sure is…" Sakura added. "That _is_ a long time!" Naruto added with his usual loud voice.

"Hee hee hee! You bet it's a long time!" the woman cackled, "My family is one of the oldest in the whole village. By the way, my name is Kanashi Yoru."

"Kanashi? That's the clan my mom was born into…" Kirei was surprised. "But, Kirei, you're from the Tanaka clan!" Naruto pointed out. "Yeah, but my mom's parents were from two separate clans and they loved each other very much, but they couldn't get married. So, they secretly got married and had my mother, my uncle, and my aunt, and they decided to name give them all the Tanaka name," Kirei explained. "So your grandpa is from the Kanashi clan, and your grandma is from the Tanaka clan, right?" Naruto asked a final question. "Yeah… mumbles Something like that…" Kirei answered. _Hmm? 'Something like that'?_ Sakura wondered.

"Oh, and one more thing, children…" the woman looked depressed. "Yes?" Kakashi waited. "…I've lost--- someone precious to me…" she answered, "My grandson… He's in that horrible building somewhere!… I'm worried about him, and so are my son and his wife! Please, if you can go find him, I'd be so happy!" The old woman started crying. "Well, we'll do our best…" Kakashi replied. "Oh! Thank you so much! My family will be back together again!" the woman thanked Squad 7 and their sensei.

As they walked outside, Kirei and Naruto remembered something. "Naruto, that boy, do you think that's him?" Kirei asked. "Maybe it is…" Naruto answered, "Kakashi-sensei? There was this kid in the room where we found the lady's necklace… He looked really young, like, teenager young!" Naruto asked his master. "Where did you find him?" Kakashi asked. "I just told you!" Naruto complained.

"Naruto… Look…" Kirei tapped Naruto's shoulder. Sakura gasped. There, right in front of them, was the boy. "It's him, Naruto…" Kirei told her teammate.

"Are you the ones that trespassed into that room?" the kid asked Naruto and Kirei. "Are you the grandson of the woman who lives here?" Kirei asked. "…looks down I am…" the boy answered.

"What's going on out there?" the old woman came outside. "Hitori! Is that really you!" she walked up to the kid. "Hello, Grandma Yoru…" the kid answered. "OH!" Yoru yanked the boy by the shirt and gave him a super-tight hug.

"Kore des hitots no mahou--- This is a miracle! You've found him already! I will pay each of you _and_ your village many wages!" Yoru hugged her grandson one more time.

As Yoru finally finished hugging her grandson, Hitori looked up. "Thanks for helping me…" his voice faded as he shifted his eyes to look at Kirei. "Itoko Steki? Kirei?" Hitori asked. "Itoko Hayai?" Kirei looked at Hitori with curiosity.

_Itoko? Cousin? And what's with the names? Steki means lovely and Hayai means fast… Are they nicknames?_ Sakura wondered.

Hitori and Kirei stepped closer to each other. "…It _is_ you!" Kirei leaped forward and hung around his neck just like she did with Kunahi. _Must be a typical thing for her…_Sasuke remembered.

"You look so different than when I saw you with Aunt Hae… How long ago was that Hitori?" Kirei asked.

"I think I was 10 and you were 5… Yeah… It was at our last reunion in your village," Hitori answered.

"Oh, right… When you, Kunahi and Itachi each broke your right arms, so you couldn't write down any formulas for jutsu at school," Kirei giggled. _What? Oh… That reunion… The one me and Itachi and me were invited to…_ Sasuke frowned as he remembered.

"So… This guy's your cousin?" Naruto asked. Naruto stayed quiet for a long time didn't he? "Mmm-hmm," Kirei nodded. "How?" Naruto questioned again. "Well, that story that I told you about the Kanashi clan and my aunt… That aunt is his mom," Kirei explained.

"Oh! I get it now!" Naruto finally got the answer he wanted. "I gotta go, grandma'll probably take me to my parents now, so I'll see you sometime soon, right?" Hitori asked. "Course you will!" Kirei smiled.

Kirei hugged her cousin one more time and watched him walk off with his grandmother, who had given Kakashi the wages she promised them. "Well, mission accomplished! Now, we can head home," Kakashi confirmed.

After another 5 hours of walking back home and Kakashi gave the officials the money, Naruto and his teammates walked to the clearing in the forest and saw that Kiba's group, Shikamaru's group, Neji's group, Gaara's group, and Dosu's group were already there, confused and talking.

"What's going on?" Naruto ran in and asked Kiba. "Hey, kid!" Kiba whirled around and greeted Naruto, "Glad you four made it! Lady Tsunade was about to announce something…"

"Ahem!" Everyone looked at the middle of the clearing. "Good evening, everyone," it was Lady Tsunade, "I'm glad you all made it. We're about to start a new contest- just a contest- to see which one of you is the toughest of the bunch… The top ninja!"

_To Be Continued…_


End file.
